07/19 farewell to (Cape Breton,) Nova Scotia

 

07/19 farewell to (Cape Breton,) Nova Scotia

It was a rainy morning and we realized we would have to pack our tent in the rain. But being Guiders and Scouters we were prepared. Emma of course was outfitted from head to toe in her raincoat, rain pants and rubber boots. 

We packed up our site and said farewell to Mira River provincial Park. First stop of the day was to refuel our energies with a quick drive-through at Tim Horton, then we made our way to a reproduction of a Highland village. It was called Baile nan Gaileheal. The concept of the highland Village was really great. It explained immigration of Gaelic settlers to Cape Breton Island and it demonstrated how their lives changed over time. The first re-created building that we entered was a stone farm dwelling that would have been found on the island off of Scotland. The Costumed staff played characters who were preparing to be for the Americas. When we left that building and walked uphill we left the area that was representing Scotland and walked into “Nova Scotia”. The first couple of buildings that we visited were inhabited by early settlers living in the early 1800s and working as farmers clearing the land for more permanent structures.

Each building that we stopped into along the way would then tell the story of progress and time passing for community and settlement. The last two stops Village were a home from the early 1900s and two work shops, one that was used for wool production and the other a shingle maker. When we visited house, they had just finished making an authentic for lunch and so the woman offered me a taste. So I tried what is called white pudding.

White pudding was almost like a stuffing. It was made from oats, onions, suet and spices. They were mixed together, and then put it into a casing much like a sausage. The sausage shaped white pudding was then sliced into rounds and fried or baked. I found it to be absolutely delicious and I will definitely try to figure out how to make it even if I don’t make it with the casing but make it as a loose stuffing. We officially left  Cape Brenton in the afternoon and headed toward Halifax. We made directly for the Maretime Museum of the Atlantic in Halifax as it was open in the evening until 8 PM. Most attractions that we have visited all close by 5 PM so we were fortunate to find that they stayed late on Tuesdays.

It was an interesting museum and had quite a few static displays. There certainly was a lot of reading. At that point Emma and I both concentrated our time and reading efforts on the areas that described maritime disasters.

One of Emma‘s highlights at the museum was meeting their parrot . His name was Merlin. We discovered that during Covid he struggled with change of routine and had begun to pluck his feathers out. Now he is making progress in his recovery from Covid stress. So the lesson learned is that not only people but animals two are creatures of social habits and they are better when surrounded by love and positive routines.

After we had explored the museum we went out and walked along the waterfront for a short while. Then we headed to a cidery in uptown Halifax where I met up with a Guiding friend. She had been a Ranger 20 years ago that went on a trip to Costa Rica. It was nice to have catch up and has wishes food and cider at the same time.I had a bit of a fight with a parking meter that insisted I pay online. I refused to preload $10 to an account to pay for $4 of parking. Fortunately, Hilly had an account and could enter our plate.

We made the drive to our KOA campground just outside of Halifax. We had our moments of frustration after some struggles in the dark but we managed to get the trailer parked and our damp tent put up. Bedtime….